The Nature Of The Church (Part One) Seeing the distinction between the individual, collective, and universal as shown in the Scriptures.

Introduction When Peter proclaimed “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God”; Jesus revealed that He would build His church. The word for “church” is the Greek ekklesia This word means assembly, gathering, mob, people coming together for a purpose or as a group.

The Church Romans 12:3-8, 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, Ephesians 4:4-6, 5:23-32, Hebrews 12:1, Throughout the New Testament, descriptions of the church as such, the Body of Christ, the people of God, etc., maintains an important vagary (not really specific).

The Church Emphasis is often placed on the singularity and unity of the church: Christ has but one Body; its different parts function together as one. Yet Paul is writing to the church in Rome, and then the church in Corinth, and the church in Ephesus: Churches in the plural denoting more than one.

The Church To this end we often make distinctions between the "church universal" and the "local church“. Church universal: the one Body of Christ spoken of specifically whenever emphasis is placed on the singularity or uniqueness of the collective people of God. Local church: a collective of Christians in a given specific place and time who frequently assemble with one another, spoken of specifically whenever emphasis is placed on a singular group of Christians meeting in one place (e.g. church in Rome) or multiple such groups in a larger area (e.g. churches of Galatia).

The Church While this distinction must be made in many places in the Bible; In order to make sense of what is revealed in Scripture we must remember that the Apostles never explicitly make the distinction: they speak of the “ekklesia” in both senses without qualification! The ideal: a given local church is the reflection of the members of the church universal in that time and place.

The Church In reality, some of the members of a given local church may not actually be part of the universal church; Perhaps some members of the universal church living in that area at that time do not meet with that one specific local church. Discussions of the relationship between individual Christians and the local church are important and, Lord willing, will be had at another time.

The Church Yet an often less discussed and emphasized discussion involves the relationship between the individual Christian and the church universal. Understanding the nature of this relationship proves even more important in our age of developed communication technology connecting people around the country and the world as never before!

The Church Therefore, what is the relationship between the individual Christian and the church universal? What is the constitution and nature of the church universal? What sort of relationship exists among the members of the church universal? What are the responsibilities of an individual Christian to the church universal?

Conclusion (Part One) How do we manage our responsibilities as an individual Christian to both the church universal and to the local church? Our next lesson will discuss the Universal Church and our part of the relationship. Learning about the Church is so very important today; Because there is a lot of ignorance and misunderstanding concerning this subject. Invitation.